I am always fascinated when I hear a “perfect” pop song and find out, for whatever reason (distributing failure, listener apathy, etc.) that it did not make the Top 40. I only apply this to songs released probably thru the 80’s, as after that the criteria for charting becomes all convoluted. I was wondering if anyone knew any songs they feel apply, as I would like to find some songs that I may be unfamiliar with that fit this category. Mine are:
Surrender- Cheap Trick (studio version)
Talking Heads- Once in a Lifetime
Talking Heads- This Must be the Place
Caravan- Surprise, Surprise (probably not released as a single in the US?)
Rose Royce- Wishing on a Star
Cover Girls- Show Me
Orpheus- Can’t Find the Time
Sundays- Here’s Where the Story Ends
Here’s another Squeeze song: “Crying In My Sleep.” I saw them perform it on Letterman when it was new, and they did a stunning rendition of it with the house band. After a lot of searching, I found it on the album, and it was so different as to be nearly unrecognizable. If they’d gone back into the studio to cut it just like they played it on TV and released it as a single, I don’t know how it could have stayed out of the Top Ten.
I have all kinds of recommendations, but I have to go to work now. I’ll be back.
**Emitt Rhodes: ** “With My Face on the Floor,” “She’s Such a Beauty,” “Fresh as a Daisy,” and “Live Till You Die.” All are perfectly crafty catchy pop songs (think of a US version of Paul McCartney at his best) but they never caught on.
**Spirit: ** “Prelude/Nothing to Hide,” “Mr. Skin” or “Animal Zoo” from Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus. The songs were great, but problematic due to the subject matter. The single released from the album, “Nature’s Way” is good, but not pop enough. The record company had little interest in promoting it because 1. the group had broken up before the album was released and 2. the head of the boutique label seemed to be planning to leave.
Fall On Me , R. E. M. They didn’t break out of college-indie-band status into Top-40 popularity until the album that followed, despite the early-Beatles-esque catchiness of this song.
Although you implied this, one reason why many “perfect” pop songs never made the U.S. Top 40 was because they never were released as singles. They were album cuts that sometimes ended up getting airplay on Top 40 radio stations.
Was that released as a single? I thought it was just an album cut?
I can’t find where it charted, but whereever it landed, it deserved higher:
Starry Eyes by the Records. Not only a perfect pop song. The perfect pop song. When you look up the definition of “tight” in the dictionary, it lists “Starry Eyes by the Records” as the #3 definition.
I was going to add, yet I never heard this song on the radio. Except once. In 2001. For 3 minutes. Fortunately my tape recorder was on This leads me to believe it didn’t chart all that high, if at all, or I would have heard it on the radio back in the day, or on oldies or popular retro-alternative stations today.
Every time I played “Swear” when I was a college dj, someone would call and ask who that was and where they could get the album. I have no idea why that wasn’t a giganto-hit.
This leads me to believe it didn’t chart all that high, if at all, or I would have heard it on the radio back in the day, or on oldies or popular retro-alternative stations today.